We have already examined the rarest stamps from numerous countries, including Germany, France, the UK, Ireland, Belgium, the Netherlands, Australia, Canada, Spain, Portugal, Israel, the Vatican, Italy, Switzerland, New Zealand, the USA, Monaco, the Falkland Islands, Greece, Austria, Luxembourg, Malta, Finland, Sweden, Poland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Iceland, Greenland, Indonesia, Namibia, China, Hong Kong, Mexico, Japan, and Suriname. Today, we take a look at the rarest and most valuable Aruba stamps.
Postal service on Aruba officially started on August 1, 1892, while the island was still part of the Colony of Curaçao. In the beginning, mail was very simple and mostly came by boats from Curaçao, and sometimes from Venezuela. One of the first people connected with this early mail handling was Garibaldi Cephas Helder, who took care of boats carrying mail. The postal service was not independent at first, because it was managed from Willemstad, Curaçao. For many years, Aruba used stamps of Curaçao and Dependencies, and later stamps of the Netherlands Antilles.
2½ cent King Willem III stamp
Curaçao - 1873
One of the First Stamps Used on Aruba
This changed on January 1, 1986, when Aruba received Status Aparte within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. From that moment, Aruba had its own postal service and started issuing its own stamps. Since then, Aruba stamps have mostly shown local culture, nature, tourism, and themes connected with the island.
As we’ve already mentioned, Aruba started issuing its own stamps on January 1, 1986. This was the year when Aruba received Status Aparte and became a separate country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. Before that, stamps from Curaçao, and later from the Netherlands Antilles, were used on the island. This is also the main reason why Aruba doesn’t have many very old or extremely valuable stamps. Even the first Aruba stamps are only around 40 years old, which is not much in the world of philately. Still, that doesn’t mean Aruba has no interesting stamps to collect. Some modern issues and complete sets can have decent value.
Paradise Birds
Aruba - 2014
For example, the 2014 Paradise Birds set is listed at around €22.50 mint, while the 2015 Tourism set is listed at around €18.00 mint. These stamps are not great world rarities, but they are still among the more valuable Aruba issues.
Tourist Spots
Aruba - 2015
Today we’ve talked briefly about the postal history of Aruba and the most valuable Aruba stamps. I didn’t want to mix Aruba’s own stamps with stamps issued by other countries and territories, which were used on the island before 1986. Because of this, Aruba stamps are generally not as valuable as stamps from many other countries.
UK - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable UK Stamps
France - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable French Stamps
Germany - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable German Stamps
Ireland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Irish Stamps
Belgium - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Belgium Stamps
The Netherlands - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Dutch Stamps
Australia - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Australian Stamps
Canada - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Canadian Stamps
Spain - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Spanish Stamps
Portugal - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Portuguese Stamps
Israel - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Stamps of Israel
Vatican - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Vatican Stamps
Italy - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Italian Stamps
Switzerland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Swiss Stamps
New Zealand - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable New Zealand Stamps
USA - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable U.S. Stamps
Monaco - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Monaco Stamps
Falkland Islands - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Falkland Islands Stamps
Greece - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Stamps of Greece
Austria - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Austrian Stamps
Luxembourg - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Luxembourg Stamps
Malta - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Malta Stamps
Finland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Finland Stamps
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Poland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Polish Stamps
Liechtenstein - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Liechtenstein Stamps
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Iceland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Icelandic Stamps
Greenland - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Greenland Stamps
Indonesia - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Indonesian Stamps
Namibia/South West Africa - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Namibian (South West Africa) Stamps
China - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable China Stamps
Hong Kong - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Hong Kong Stamps
Mexico - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Mexican Stamps
Japan - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Japanese Stamps
Suriname - Rarest Stamps: Most Valuable Suriname Stamps
